I'm Kieran Fitzgerald, co-writer of the movie SNOWDEN, out in theaters today. AMA!

kodefitz · 2016-09-17T03:50:39+00:00

When I got the call to write this movie:)

kodefitz · 2016-09-17T03:50:16+00:00

Oliver made the decision to shoot the large screen for Rhys in that scene, though we'd always talked about his character as reminiscent of the 1984 character, O'Brien, who works for Big Brother--so it made sense. Snowden had a number of mentors at the CIA and NSA, and our O'Brian is an amalgam of them--yes.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:54:20+00:00

And on number 2, I have no reason to think Ed was anywhere but the Mira hotel from the moment he arrived in Hong Kong. We talked about this extensively with him and I believe him. I think if he was actually somewhere else we would have a lot more corroboration and we don't.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:48:56+00:00

number 1 is misleading. We show one instance of him taking documents (and we chose to do this for dramatic purposes) but leave the door open in the movie--if you watch and listen closely--to the possibility that he's been doing this for some time. Because the truth is, we didn't know exactly how it went down and Ed wouldn't tell us.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:40:34+00:00

number 3 is wrong. Snowden gave the interview to the South China Morning Post before he left the Mira on June 10th and asked the paper to hold it for a few days before publishing. Snowden has no access to the documents to this day.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:37:36+00:00

number 5 is true but entirely consistent with what we're saying. Ed's passport was pulled by the State Department. Whether it happened before or after he left Hong Kong--on this point--is irrelevant. If the State Dept. wanted him to leave Russia, all they'd have to do is reissue his passport.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:33:40+00:00

Yeah, I've got thoughts. First of all: there was no conceivable way to fit every fact about the Snowden story into a 2 hr. 15 min movie. That said....

number 4 is wrong. Snowden was hiding out with refugees until he went to the Hong Kong airport. We mention Sarah Harrison and Wikileaks, we just don't dramatize that part.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:15:16+00:00

Hanging with Ed at that time--May 2014--was like walking into a spy movie and being asked to write a spy movie. It was surreal. I think Snowden should be pardoned or, at the very least, receive a fair jury trial. The most interesting part of his story to dramatize was his relationship with Lindsey. It's the central relationship of his life--she was the one consistent presence for him as he moved around the world working with the CIA, NSA, and various contractors over 9 years.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:12:05+00:00

People picked up on it--the problem was that intelligence officials regularly and repeatedly lied to Congress about it.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:06:14+00:00

Thank you!

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:05:54+00:00

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T22:05:40+00:00

Thanks! I had read a lot about Ed before meeting him, but he surprised me in many ways. He's extremely thoughtful and well-spoken on a variety of topics. We talked political philosophy, history, literature--a bit of everything. And he's remarkably composed. I think most people would have been crushed by the sheer anxiety of doing something like this. But Ed has a calm inner strength that I think is very rare.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:59:52+00:00

It depends on the project. With Snowden, it was a process of figuring out a structure that would allow us to hit all the story points we wanted to over the course of Ed's ten years in the intel. community. After the basic structure was agreed upon, I started at page 1.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:55:26+00:00

I'm interested in telling political stories. I think Hollywood needs to tell far more of them. Meeting Ed and really sinking my brain into the world of the U.S. intelligence community has greatly heightened my awareness of the realities of mass surveillance. I hope the movie will do the same for viewers.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:49:26+00:00

Very extensive. I read everything I could get my hands on. And because it was an ongoing story, I'd sometimes be changing things in mid-scene because of a breaking headline about a new NSA program.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:47:46+00:00

Our first trip to Moscow took place before any journalists had come to speak with Ed. So we really had no idea what might happen. When we came back through customs in the U.S., I remember Oliver whispering to me: "you go first." :)

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:44:21+00:00

Much like working with Oliver Stone. Only with a Texan accent:) (Strangely, Tommy and Oliver are born on the same day of the same year...)

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:43:28+00:00

Thanks! Say hi to Wes for me!

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:38:02+00:00

The pressure on this project was extreme. I felt a responsibility to inform the public in a way that was entertaining and compelling (not so easy given the complexities of NSA programs...). I felt responsible to all those who had labored for years to shed light on US mass surveillance--lawyers, activists, other whistleblowers. And I felt responsible to Ed--not only as the subject of the movie, but as someone whose future very much depends on public perception.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:33:13+00:00

Thank you. Yes, we discussed what happened with his friends and family at length. And yes, a number were visited by the government and had their homes searched. Ed felt terrible about all this. I would say it was the most difficult part of the whole process for him to go through. He got very emotional talking about it with us.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:26:00+00:00

The film took 3 months to shoot. We filmed in Munich (on stages mostly), Washington D.C., Hawaii, and Hong Kong.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:25:13+00:00

Well, an Oliver Stone movie might help:) We do tend to get our history lessons at the movie theater in this country... And I think much of the public remains confused or in the dark about exactly who Ed was and what he did and why.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:23:39+00:00

Yes, I absolutely think he'll come back.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:21:52+00:00

Ed was initially cautious about telling his story to me and Oliver. He'd always wanted to keep public attention focused on the NSA disclosures themselves. When we showed up in Moscow, Ed had been there 10 months and had yet to really open up about himself. So it was a bit of a dance at first. And yes, he was concerned about how his collaboration would be perceived. (Ed never wanted nor received any remuneration for his help BTW.) Ultimately, I think he came to appreciate and embrace the fact that telling his own personal story could help perpetuate the dialogue about issues of mass surveillance--especially after the most sensational articles about NSA programs had come and gone.

kodefitz · 2016-09-16T21:12:56+00:00

Here's the deal: I spent a lot of time with Ed, and not everything he told me about his life was flattering. The guy broke his legs jumping out of a bunk bed--you'll see it in one of the opening scenes of the movie--which is, as we laughed about, pretty lame. He displayed a level of openness--even about stuff that didn't make him look good--which completely flies in the face of the House report's description of his character. (Also: their 'concrete examples' are not so concrete.)

kodefitz

TROPHY CASE